Vietnam

The Vietnam War ended more than 40 years ago, but it continues to claim military lives. Nearly every spring new names are etched into the black granite walls of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., which pays tribute to the more than 58,000 service members who lost their lives.

President Obama announced Monday that the U.S. is fully lifting a five-decades-long arms embargo against Vietnam.

The embargo on lethal military equipment had been partially lifted in 2014; now it will be raised fully, the White House says. The president spoke about the decision from Hanoi, during the first day of a weeklong trip to Asia.

Former Texas House Speaker Ben Barnes introduced Secretary John Kerry Wednesday night who reflected on his time both fighting in the Vietnam War and fighting against it as he addressed attendees at the LBJ Library Vietnam War Summit.

Barnes says the former democratic presidential candidate and long-time senator has a unique history with the war. Kerry enlisted during college and did two tours in Vietnam -- winning silver and bronze stars and three purple hearts.

This week thousands of Vietnam War veterans gathered at the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin. They’re there for a three-day conference that takes a look back at a war where young men were drafted to defend a cause they didn’t always support and college campuses boiled over with anti-war protests. More than 40 years after the end of the war, the memories are still painful.